Battle of the beer wagons: Heavyweights Harvick, BK set to go
With the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series championship just a week away from being settled, two heavyweights are going to the mat and only one likely will get up.
After Sunday's Quicken Loans Race for Heroes 500 at Phoenix International Raceway, the field of Sprint Cup championship contenders will be reduced from eight drivers to four. The eight drivers currently in the title hunt are separated by a mere 18 points from front to back.
Not coincidentally, of the eight, the two drivers farthest back in points now are the two cars to beat at PIR on Sunday. Nor is it a coincidence that they have been two of the most successful drivers all year long, although it is a coincidence both drive cars sponsored by beer companies.
In the battle of the beer wagons, Kevin Harvick was the fastest car in practice Friday at PIR, where he qualified third for Sunday's race in his No. 4 Budweiser-sponsored Stewart-Haas Racing Chevrolet SS. Harvick was also fastest in the first two rounds of practice on Saturday and tops in 10 lap consecutive average speed in the second round. During the final Happy Hour session, he was second in single-lap speed and first again in 10 lap consecutive average speed. And Harvick has led more laps and won more poles than any other driver this season. He's also won three of the last four Cup races here at PIR.
Shadowing Harvick this weekend is Brad Keselowski, who qualified second in his No. 2 Team Penske Miller Lite Ford Fusion, was third in Friday's practice, second in Saturday's first practice and 12th in Happy Hour. Keselowski has a series-high six race victories this year.
You might recall that last Sunday's race at Texas Motor Speedway ended with Harvick finishing second and Keselowski third, which was followed first by Jeff Gordon and Keselowski arguing on pit road and then Harvick shoving Keselowski towards Gordon, triggering a massive brawl on pit road.
While there are an almost infinite number of possible outcomes to Sunday's race -- Jeff Gordon or Denny Hamlin winning, for example -- there is a strong possibility that either Harvick or Keselowski wins the race and advances to the Championship Round. And there's an even better chance that the driver who doesn't win is eliminated on Sunday.
And you can bet your bottom dollar both drivers know it. Just as they know they have the horses to get it done.
"I feel good about our car," said Harvick. "It's been fun to drive so far, so we just have to keep working on it. The nature of this garage is not to usually have an advantage by the time the race rolls around. Too many smart people in this garage to usually maintain that, so we have to keep working and keep trying to make our car better. But, they unloaded really well and every lap has been good for us."
"I've been very encouraged," said Keselowski. "We had great speed here in the spring and it seems like we maybe found a little bit more, so I'm very, very optimistic about (Sunday). Kevin has really run well here for probably the last five or six races. He'll be one of the guys to beat, so it should be a great battle come Sunday. I'm looking forward to it and we'll see how it plays out."
Keselowski acknowledged after qualifying Friday that Harvick has the car to beat.
"I think Kevin probably has a tenth (of a second per lap) on us," Keselowski said. "We're right now probably a second to third-place car and Kevin probably has a tenth on everyone based off the spring read and today's practice read. A tenth isn't super-close, but it's not too far away where we can't reach it. If we could find that, I would feel really confident."
For now, though, Harvick is the man to beat, with Keselowski a close second.
"The 4 car (Harvick) is in its own category this weekend," said Jamie McMurray, who was fastest in Happy Hour and a man in position to know.
But if there's anything the first eight races of the Chase have taught us, it's that anything can and will happen, in the race or on pit road afterward. And Sunday's race at Phoenix will likely be more of the same.
Boys, have at it.
VIDEO: Kevin Harvick wins the spring race at Phoenix, but in a freaky fast Jimmy John's-sponsored car
